a. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a means and method of mass spectrometry, and in particular, a means and method of single event time-of-flight mass spectrometry for analysis of a specimen material.
b. Problems in the Art
The benefits, needs, and desires of determining the constituent make-up of compositions and materials is well known in the art. A number of different methods and instrumentation set-ups are used to attempt to analyze materials. In general these methods are either unreliable, marginally accurate, extremely costly, or require significant amounts of time for gathering of data from the instrumentation and/or scientific manpower for interpretation of results.
One method which is fairly accurate and reliable, but costly and time consuming, is mass spectrometry. The cost and time requirements of most mass spectrometers are prohibitive for small or economical applications.
One well known type of mass spectrometry is time-of-flight mass spectrometry. With this method ions are created in packets which are accelerated, drift through a space where the masses with different velocities are separated, and then detected. One of the methods for creating the packets of ions is by bombarding a solid specimen with a pulse of ions. In turn, charged ion particles are emitted directly from the solid specimen as packets of ions which are subsequently accelerated, separated and detected. The time-of-flight from their emission-to-detection is then utilized to compute their mass, which thereafter can be converted to a determination of the composition of the particle, and thus the composition of the specimen.
Mass spectrometers used for determining the constituent make-up of solid specimens can cost in the range of one-half million dollars. Time-of-flight mass spectrometers used for these purposes cost in the range of $300,000, and to date have not had high mass resolution.
There is therefore a real need for a mass-determining analytical method and instrumentation which can be used for a variety of types of specimens, including those with high mass compositions, which is simple in design, which takes significantly less time for information gathering, and which is significantly less costly than present systems.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to present a means and method of single event time-of-flight mass spectrometry which solves or improves over the problems and deficiencies in the art.
Another object of the present invention is to obtain factual information which accurately defines the structure of a specimen, the type of information not currently available to date by mass spectrometers.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a means and method as above described which has increased resolution, dynamic range, and accuracy over conventional mass spectrometry methods.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a means and method as above described which is significantly less costly than other mass spectrometry methods.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a means and method as above described which requires significantly less time to produce useful results.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a means and method as above described which uses conventional equipment, and is economical, reliable, and efficient.
These and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent with reference to the accompanying specification and claims.